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Fall Accidents at Stores in Philadelphia
Fall accidents are probably one of the most common type of injury/accident cases in Philadelphia. This is probably due to the extent of the commercial activity in Philadelphia, which is a hub of activity at malls, retail stores, restaurants, etc. Fall accidents can happen anywhere, but most fall accidents occur in bathrooms and on public walkways like sidewalks.
Sidewalk Fall Accidents in Front of Stores & Businesses
Fall down accidents in large cities like Philadelphia are very common, especially on sidewalks. Many sidewalks in Philadelphia are made of brick which is particularly susceptible to intrusion from tree roots. It’s not uncommon to see broken concrete, uneven concrete, holes and even missing pieces of sidewalk in downtown Philadelphia.
Call our Philadelphia sidewalk fall accident lawyers at (866) 641-0806
Financial Compensation for Pain & Suffering
Many fall accidents result in serious injuries. Broken wrists and ankles are common. In some instances, a pedestrian who trips and falls on a sidewalk may suffer a brain injury.
When these kinds of serious accidents happen, an injured pedestrian naturally wants to know about their legal rights to financial compensation for pain and suffering. This article will discuss how pain and suffering is evaluated in a Philadelphia fall accident lawsuit.
Under Pennsylvania injury law, an injured party has a right to make a legal claim for all the damages which naturally flow from an accident. This includes medical bills, lost wages, out of pocket expenses and pain and suffering.
Related: Store Accident Lawsuits in Pennsylvania – Financial Compensation
While medical bills and lost wages can be calculated fairly easily, pain and suffering cannot be calculated. Rather, when considering the award for pain and suffering, the fact finder must consider how the injuries affected the individual. This means taking into account the following factors:
- the nature of the injury,
- the extent of the medical treatment,
- whether there are any residual symptoms, and
- how the injuries affected the individual’s family, social, and work life.
Consider the following examples.
Example 1: A woman walking into a department store in downtown Philadelphia trips over a large piece of missing sidewalk and fractures her knee. She is a professional athlete who is sidelined for months due to the fracture, surgery and recovery.
Example 2: A man is walking into a restaurant in Philadelphia and slips on water. He breaks a toe, but doesn’t require much medical treatment.
Here, the woman in example 1 clearly has more pain and suffering than the man in example 2. Therefore, it’s pretty clear that the individual in example 1 would receive a larger financial award for pain and suffering than the individual in example 2. The point of these examples is to show that pain and suffering depends in large part on the extent of the injuries and medical treatment.
For more information, please visit our fall accident law library, brought to you by our injury lawyers.
DISCLAIMER: This website does not create any attorney-client relationship or provide legal advice. It is crucial to speak to a qualified lawyer prior to making any decision about your case. Read full disclaimer at the bottom of this page.
